


Heartbeat

by Katie993



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Character Death, Darcy Lewis Feels, Darcy Lewis-centric, Kidnapping, Protective Avengers, WinterShieldShock - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-30
Updated: 2020-02-29
Packaged: 2020-05-31 01:33:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 16,175
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19415740
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katie993/pseuds/Katie993
Summary: Darcy had been missing for a week. The longest week of his life. The longest week of Steve’s. The hardest they’d ever endured, despite illness and war, despite serum and hydra and experiments and torture. They’d taken her from them. From the team. From her life. From him and from Steve.Potential series if wanted?





	1. Chapter 1

Most of the building had been cleared out before they’d arrived and infiltrated it. There were guards and soldiers that kept the team busy but not long after he and Nat had breached the building’s side entrance did Bucky realise they weren’t going to find any high-level Hydra officials. He felt his fear flare as he wondered if they were too late, if she’d been whisked away again before they could catch up, before they could find her. 

Darcy had been missing for a week. The longest week of his life. The longest week of Steve’s. The hardest they’d ever endured, despite illness and war, despite serum and hydra and experiments and torture. They’d taken her from them. From the team. From her life. From him and from Steve. And as the week wore on they began to uncover how deep Hydra’s plans had run. How well orchestrated and detailed their entire mission had been. How long they’d spent putting each delicate step into motion and how meticulous and callous they had been. 

As they slipped silently around the corner they came across another door that was identical to the ones they’d been searching as they moved deeper into the building. The body that lay on the ground in front of it, however, caused Bucky to stride more purposefully forward. They could tell the man had been dead for at least a day, perhaps longer, a single shot to the forehead having caused him to fall. He refused to think about the fact that the man was dressed in a white lab coat. 

Bucky forced the door open, his vibranium grip jarring it from its frame when it refused to budge. The revolting, acrid smell of blood was the first thing to hit him…in the chest. 

Then he saw it. Smattered across the white walls, pooled on the floor, staining a thin white mattress rust red. The bed was empty, as was the rocking chair that sat on the other side of the room and the crib that stood to his right. Later, Bucky would remember the mobile that hung above the crib, the colourful racoon and owl and monkey and turtle that had witnessed whatever horrors had been committed. 

He’d seen plenty of places Hydra liked to keep hostages and targets and prisoners. Far, far worse conditions were the norm. The room he found himself in was large and furnished. But it would forever remain the most horrifying. 

There were two bodies on the ground matching the one outside. Blood staining the white of their lab coats, but Bucky stepped over them after only a cursory glance. Nat who had been urging him forward through the doorway stilled in it when Bucky moved, a sound leaving her throat that caused a flurry of noise to swarm over comms. Bucky didn’t hear it.

Darcy was curled up on the floor against the wall furthest from the door. Her skin was far too pale with a yellow-hue, and what was visible was also painted red. Her bare legs and arms coated in dry blood. Her hair matted. 

She wore a gown of some sort and there was a large blanket in her lap that failed to cover her. Instead, Darcy had wrapped it around a small bundle that was cradled against her chest.  
Bucky dropped to his knees beside her staring. 

“Darce” his voice was strained as his eyes remained glued to the baby. The tiny baby that should have been growing inside of her. The baby that his mind couldn’t quite comprehend was the same one he and Steve had spent hours talking to, that Darcy sang to. The baby whose heartbeat he and Steve could just make out whenever they were close to Darcy.  
Their daughter that should have been safe and almost due. Almost. 

Darcy didn’t turn to look at him, didn’t acknowledge the door had been forced open. Didn’t acknowledge Bucky’s presence or voice. Didn’t move. She was breathing, they could hear her laboured breaths that were just moving her chest and the baby. 

Nat’s murmured voice behind him calling for Banner through the comms failed to register as he stared. But the voice that rang in his ear a moment later managed to cut through,

“Buck are they okay? Is she-“

Steve. It was obvious he was fighting the words strained with exertion and timed between blows. 

And Bucky who had spent years putting himself back together, reconciling the parts of himself that seemed impossible to exist in one human being…allowed himself to break apart. The soldier in him stepped forward and forced Bucky to look at Darcy, to put the shock on hold. To reach for her and assess. 

“Darcy sweetheart it’s me, it’s Buck” his hands went to either side of her face forcing her to look at him. Her gaze was a blank stare that failed to meet his eyes, her skin was too cold beneath both of his hands. 

“Darcy” some part of his brain that was still functioning heard Bruce arrive as he tried a second time to reach the woman. 

“Darce please look me” she stared through him.

“Bucky talk to me” Bucky pulled out his comms and brushed Darcy’s matted hair back before pushing the device into Darcy’s ear. 

“Steve talk to her” Bucky implored, knowing the man would hear him. As he heard Steve begin to speak, his mind tried to catch up. He turned to see Bruce pulling things from the med-bag he’d swung over his shoulder as they’d disembarked the Quinjet not twenty minutes earlier. Nat crouched on Darcy’s opposite side and met Bucky’s gaze her eyes serious but clear. She raised her fingers to Darcy’s neck finding her pulse and Bucky forced his mind to focus, forced himself to function. 

“Doll I need you to give her to me” he said softly. When she failed to respond, to Nat’s touch, or Bucky’s voice he raised his arms. Another body arrived and moved around Darcy to Nat’s side. 

“I’m going to get her to Bruce” Bucky explained as he began to lift the tiny body. She didn’t move or resist, her arms falling limply to her lap. He didn’t see the look exchanged between Nat and Clint, the latter having crouched by Darcy’s knees taking in the room in horror, 

As Bucky stood Nat wrapped her arms around the younger woman and Darcy’s body slumped against her without resistance. 

Bruce, thankfully, was as quick and as even-keeled as Bucky needed him to be. After one sweep of the room, he instructed Bucky to lay the infant atop of the small set of drawers after pulling a blanket from the bag. The tiny baby was dressed in a plain white onesie and Bucky spotted at least a dozen identical ones folded on the dresser.

Behind them Nat and Clint moved effortlessly around Darcy. Nat supported the woman as she fastened a tourniquet around her arm. Clint slid the needle beneath her skin having more trouble than he normally would. The information passed between them silently as they worked. Dehydration, shock, bradycardia, hypothermia. 

When Tony arrived, he stood in the doorway for several moments though no one spared him a glance. When his faceplate drew upwards his face was already schooled into a calm, composed expression. His eyes moved over Darcy as he headed towards Bruce knowing that she was in good hands. He would recall for a long time the expression that contorted Barnes’ face before his mind eyes found the tiny baby beneath Bruce’s hands. 

No one could recall how much suffocating silence passed before Sam and Steve arrived. The latter’s words trailed off once his eyes finally locked on the woman he’d been persistently attempting to get a response from as he and Sam had followed Vision’s directions via comms. Relief flooded him at the sight of her, but the bile rose in his throat and his heart seized as his mind processed what was happening. 

Unable to move from his spot Steve stood rooted in the doorway his eyes flitting between a catatonic Darcy, a frozen Bucky and a sight, he was certain he didn’t want to see, shielded by Bruce’s shoulders. 

‘No life signs detected Sir’ Friday’s voice was mournful emanating quietly from the suit but loud enough for all of them to hear. To echo painfully between them. 

Tony saw the defeat and anguish that clouded Bruce’s eyes as he worked though there was no trace of green to be found. Sam, from where he stood beside Tony, watched Bucky carefully, his mind assessing in a way he hadn’t for a long time as he looked at his friend. Nat watched Darcy’s chest rise and fall beneath the gown as she held the woman who’d become a sister. And the rest of the team watched in silence as Bruce wrapped the small body up, taking such care to tuck in each corner of the soft baby blanket Pepper had handed him before the team had departed. 

Bucky remained motionless, not having looked away, not having blinked, since he’d laid his daughter down carefully; not when Steve arrived, not when Friday had spoken, not when Thor had arrived and exclaimed loudly in shock at the state of his lightning-sister. 

Behind them Darcy remained just as motionless and unresponsive. One of Natasha’s hands cradled the younger woman’s head against her chest, tucked beneath her own chin. She counted Darcy’s breaths, watching her chest rise and fall. She counted each beat of her heart, her fingertips stilled over the pulse point. She counted. She had seen the babe, she knew that there was nothing more to be done, that they were far, far too late. 

Clint’s hand was wrapped around Darcy’s shin. The father torn between wanting to tuck Darcy against his chest and get her as far away from what was happening as possible, to lead both Bucky and Steve away, to cradle the child who had lost her life before it had properly begun and to immediately set off home to see his own children and wife. 

Darcy herself stared into nothing, her eyes were unfocused and distant. Clint had exchanged a long look with Wanda who had clearly seen enough in Darcy’s mind to be leaning bodily against the wall beside Vision, tears tracking down her face silently. He refused himself to imagine what she’d seen but allowed himself to be comforted that Darcy’s mind was still active. That Wanda would have sounded the alarm if she’d not been able to reach her friend at all.

When Bruce moved, Nat’s gaze finally lifted to watch, her eyes flicking towards Steve momentarily who had yet to step inside the room. 

Bruce steeled himself before turning to face the super soldier. Bucky’s eyes were wide and desperate in a way that reminded both Bruce and Tony of when he’d first arrived at the tower with Steve and Sam. 

“I’m so sorry James” Bruce’s words were as gentle and soft as they were firm and certain. He’d spent enough time all over the world delivering terrible and devastating news to families to know with certainty that the ex-assassin needed him to say it … out loud. Needed him to confirm his worst fear and extinguish any lingering remnant of hope. 

His words caused as much of a reaction in Bucky as they did in Darcy. The only response to the words coming from Steve after a moment. He moved. The air in the room shifted as he finally entered the room leaving Thor, in the doorway. 

The Captain walked purposefully towards Darcy, passing where Bucky and Bruce stood together. He crouched down at her side across from his teammates. Clint helped as Steve slid an arm beneath Darcy’s knees as did Nat when his other came to rest around the brunettes back. Darcy’s head rolled against his chest as they shifted but she showed no signs of recognition or acknowledgement of the movement, or of the concerned eyes that lingered on her. Clint placed the bag of fluid that was dripping into Darcy’s veins, atop her legs where it wouldn’t fall and Nat was quick to place the blanket over her legs Steve readjusting silently and pulling her closer. 

Steve stood, Darcy rising, and turned as Bruce moved forward. Bucky stared down at his daughter’s face, her closed eyelids, her ashen skin. She was carefully placed in his arms and for a long moment Bucky stared at the way she fit perfectly along his forearm. Her tiny head rested in the crook of his elbow while his fingers wrapped around her blanket-covered legs. Her weight barely registered at all, even though it was his right arm that cradled her carefully. 

Bucky turned, his feet finally moving and his eyes finding Steve’s before dropping down to take in Darcy. Their Darcy. Their brilliantly alive, brimming with life and sarcasm and wit and joy Darcy. Their wife. The mother of their daughter. Her pale hand hung listlessly as Steve held her against his body. Without thought, Bucky closed the distance and placed the tiny girl on Darcy’s chest once again. Returning daughter to mother. 

Immediately, and finally, Darcy moved. She drew her arms up to wrap around the infant just as she had been when Bucky and Nat had found her. Bucky’s hand lingered over hers, over his daughter before finally coming rest on Steve’s arm.

They stood surrounded by their team, steeped in silence for a long moment. It was Steve, once again, who moved first, with their girls tucked against his chest he headed for the door with intention behind his eyes. Steve had his mission and he would see it through. They’d set out to bring their best girl and their daughter home and it wouldn’t be until he had succeeded that he would allow himself to feel anything. 

Bucky, however, felt the flicker. In the pit of his stomach. In the square of his shoulders. In the clench of his jaw. For decades he had been prevented from feeling anything, wiped over and over and over before anything could gain traction. Now…after the time that had passed, after Steve, after therapy, after Darcy, after the team, after more therapy he could certainly feel. Everything. 

The shock that left him feeling gutted out and hollowed. That felt like free-falling from that train all over again. That felt like not enough oxygen in his lungs. The death. Of their child. Of his daughter. Of the future, that had been ripped away from him, from them. The realisation that one of the darkest of the fears that had been replaying in his mind as they’d searched for Darcy was now his reality. Darcy. The pain. The torture. The crimes that had been committed against her. Everything that had been ripped from her. The despair. The sudden impact of everything collapsing in one single moment. 

The blind, white-hot, rage that would consume him. He could feel it. There. Growing. And it was better. Than the hollowed-out emptiness that would otherwise encompass him. He let it grow, his eyes finding the bodies that had been dragged out into the hall by someone at some point. His eyes finding the blood beneath his feet that was obviously Darcy’s. That stained the bed, the floor, her legs. There were bloody handprints on the wall he knew to be hers. 

A body stepped in front of him. As his mind reeled to catch up he looked down expecting to meet Nat’s eyes, but it was Tony who had stepped into his path. There was still a lot that sat between them, a lot that remained unspoken, but something in the man’s eyes arrested Bucky where he stood. 

“No” Tony shook his head once, his eyes louder than the word, 

“You go to them…you be together, you just be together. Darcy needs you right now…she’s going to need you with her, both of you. All of you. You stay together right now. That’s it” Stark’s words were firm, direct, clear …an order. Bucky hated orders. 

“Steve…” his voice was lower than normal, tighter and for a fleeting second the team worried if the soldier had returned. Sam worried that his fear had been correct. Tony shook his head dismissing Bucky’s explanation, 

“No” he replied his voice not allowing any room for argument,

“You need to be together Barnes” Stark held his gaze unblinkingly as he waited for Bucky to respond. In some small way, the words managed to cut through the chaos that had begun to spark within him, but it was the pain and understanding and sincerity shining in Tony Starks eyes that got through to Bucky, that shook him from the building flood of emotion. 

He nodded his eyes flitting to the corridor to find it empty. For a moment panic rose within him that served to propel Bucky in the direction his family had disappeared. He caught up with Steve before he rounded the corner knowing that the rest of their family would follow behind them and together they’d return home. Less than when they’d come, far more broken and shattered but together. 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_Steve slid his arm under Darcy’s supporting the tiny body of their daughter while Bucky gently held Darcy’s freed arm. He pulled it to the side and wrapped the cuff around it, examining the marks that encircled her wrist and the bruises that marred her skin. His thumb stroked her arm as his eyes were drawn back towards the baby again. The way she fit easily in Steve’s palm, the way her head was nestled against Darcy’s chest. The soft curve of her nose and the plumpness of her lips that matched her mother’s but were far from the pink colour they should have been._

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_Nat was quick to replace the blanket. Finding a new one. One that wasn’t stained with blood and loss. One that softer. She’d brought two and draped one around Darcy’s shoulders and tucked the other around her legs. She brushed Darcy’s hair back and squeezed Bucky’s shoulder before walking back towards the front of the jet._

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_Tony and Bruce worked. Silently. Around the trio. Darcy would require care. Rehydration, re-warming, nutrition. Bruce had already started her on antibiotics after examining the incision that stretched across her lower abdomen. The mark of the trauma she had endured. No immediate intervention was required but he would begin the fight against the likely infection. Neither he nor Friday had identified any other severe concerns or injuries and if Bruce were honest he was far more concerned with Darcy’s state of mind. She remained still mostly unresponsive. Once they’d done all they could they retreated leaving the four together._

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_Steve’s eyes didn’t leave Darcy or his daughter once as he fought for composure. The only time he looked up was when the ramp to the Quinjet opened mid-flight to see Thor take off out into the cool air wielding Mjolnir. Steve knew that Jane and Pepper would be on the landing platform when they returned, and that Fury and Hill would already be working on clearing the site and finding them leads. That and they didn’t need the turbulence on the flight home._

_He was reassured by the even beeping emitting from the monitor to his side letting himself believe that Darcy was okay or at least stable. She hadn’t answered the questions he, Tony, Bruce or even Bucky had directed her way, but she responded each and every single time to hold her daughter._

_“We’re here Darce” he whispered against her hair pressing his lips to her head as he attempted not to allow the helplessness to overwhelm him entirely._

_Bucky’s hand found his behind her back and their fingers threaded together as they held her. He met Bucky’s eyes over Darcy’s head every word they could possibly speak passing between them in a silent second. He snapped his gaze back downwards a moment later his composure rapidly fraying. Bucky squeezed his hand a moment later and Steve tightened his grip._

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_Friday dimmed the lights as Pepper spread Darcy’s quilt across the bed in the medical ward. It was a private room, one that was rarely used but had been set up in case any of the team would need to spend an extended period in the med-bay. It was still equipped with anything and everything that might be needed but far less clinical and white than medical. They wanted to give Darcy her privacy. And Steve and Bucky._

_Jane pulled the cupboard open and placed the clothing she’d brought down from the apartment inside. Steve and Bucky would be able to retrieve more if needed but they wouldn’t need to leave for a while if they didn’t want to. She placed Bucky’s shirt and Steve’s striped pajama pants on the bed – the ones Darcy had worn to bed throughout her entire pregnancy. She had bought Steve the quintessential old man matching pyjama set much to Tony’s amusement for his 100th birthday but was quick to claim them for herself once her clothes had begun to feel a little snug._

_Jane’s chin trembled for a minute as she thought of her best friend. Not a moment later Friday informed them quietly of the landing on the roof and Pepper nodded encouragingly towards Jane squeezing her arm as Jane passed her. As she stood in the elevator Jane watched Pepper carefully spread out the tiny baby outfit Darcy had fallen in love with when she and Jane had taken her shopping, an errant tear escaping her stinging eyes._

_She couldn’t breakdown yet, not before Darcy had come home. Not before she’d seen her goddaughter. But as the doors opened she felt her heart begin to crumple at the lost, bereft expression that she’d never seen on Thor’s face before as he stood silently in the centre of the rooftop silhouetted against the darkening sky._

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_When the door had opened she’d pulled her daughter into her chest and curled her body tighter. It was useless and futile she knew. Their point had been proven again and again. They got what they wanted, be it by force or drugs, threats or violence._

_An errant thought, that in fact what had happened was not what they had wanted at all, offered no comfort at all. A reason, perhaps, for the dead bodies that had been left in the room with her for however long it had been but no relief._

_Bucky. She felt him. She didn’t look at him - she was far too tired to lift her head. But it was him, his warmth, his smell, his arms. Bucky._

_The tiny crease in her daughter’s chin was Bucky’s._

_Nat’s arms slotted around her at some point and she allowed herself to rest knowing her daughter was with her father. Knowing that he wouldn’t hurt her. Knowing that she could rest. At some point, her eyes focused and Clint swam into view and she knew that she was going home. That they had come for them._

_It was Steve’s chest she found herself against next and she thought of protesting, she could walk, but before she managed the strength to speak, she recalled the pain the last time she had moved. The ripping across her stomach, the ache of her hips and back, the way her head had spun and vision had blurred._

_And then she was back, and Darcy felt her arms fold back across her chest and eyes settle on the perfect face of her daughter. She looked the same as when Bucky had picked her up but she was wrapped in a soft blanket that seemed vaguely familiar. She struggled to remember where it had come from, she’d seen it before. She allowed her eyes to trace the small grey elephant in the corner where it seemed to peer up at her as her mind grew comfortable and head heavy against Steve’s warmth._

_“Darcy can you hear me?” Steve. He was standing in front of her and her mind recognised Bruce beside him, their expressions the same shade of concerned. She looked into the eyes that were almost the exact same colour as her daughters had been. Her eyes dropped down but the tiny eyelids were shut._

_When a cool breeze whirled around her she felt the two bodies on either side of her shift closer. She sighed feeling the warmth seep into the middle of her chest and her eyes slid shut for a moment before she opened them again. She let her head rest against Bucky feeling Steve’s hand running up and down her back. The ground seemed to shake, and her stomach flipped and she realised they were in the sky. They were going home. They were taking their daughter home._

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


	2. Chapter 2

“What happens now?” Steve asked softly. If he was honest, the only thing he wanted to do was to slam the door shut on the world and spend the rest of forever in the room they’d been led to after arriving back at the tower. Just him, Bucky, Darcy and their little girl. Who was too still. And too cold. But she was there, cradled in her mother’s arms. 

From where he stood in the doorway he watched Bucky settle Darcy into the bed before pressing a kiss to her forehead. Bucky was careful as he pulled the blankets up and around their girl, taking extra care around her stomach. Darcy allowed her hands to rest gently in her lap when Bucky reached for the baby, tucking their daughter into his arm before sweeping a finger over Darcy’s cheek, her wide eyes tracking each of his movements. When Jane stepped closer to the bed on her other side Darcy turned her head. 

She was beginning to respond more and more, Steve noted. To movement and sound but she was yet to speak and sometimes it seemed as though she would retreat entirely back inside her mind away from them all. Not unlike Bucky had often done not too long ago. 

Jane was as gentle and careful as she was quick and efficient with her movements; brushing her fingers over Darcy’s shoulder before making quick work of the ties that held the thin gown around Darcy’s frame. The one they’d found her in, torn and bloody. Despite her friends’ silence Jane made sure to tell Darcy what she was going to do before she did it, her low voice a soft and steady stream of comfort. When Jane got to the ties at the base of Darcy’s neck she was careful to untangle the hair that had become caught in the fabric. And when she pulled Darcy’s arms through the sleeves of Bucky’s shirt she was careful to avoid her matching raw wrists. When Darcy became restless Jane was quick to reassure the young woman, piling up pillows at her back while Bucky placed the baby back on her chest, soothing her instantaneously. 

Steve forced his eyes away as Jane gently sat down on the bed beside mother and daughter. He turned his head and met Bruce’s eyes once again, the man who Steve’s question had been directed towards, 

“You spend time together, just the three of you” he said kindly, and for a moment Steve wondered if he’d heard his previous thoughts. 

“Don’t worry about anything else for now. Yes, there’s a lot of decisions to make soon but for now just be together” it sounded so simple.

“One step at a time” Sam added gently pulling out the familiar old moniker the two of them would trade during the first few weeks they’d found Bucky. It had been a rough time for all of them and Steve had no doubt that it would have been far worse without Sam’s input and presence. 

The entire team had escorted the family to Darcy’s room in the medical bay once the Quinjet had landed; Jane, Thor and Pepper meeting them atop of the tower. It was only Sam, Jane and Bruce who lingered however, once they were settled, the rest of the team disappearing and giving them the space that Steve would remain eternally grateful for. 

“And we’ll be right here to step you through it” Bruce promised. The thought that Bruce would make a great doctor flittered through his mind suddenly. His voice was kind and comforting and solid and eased the sharp pulse that had been steadily building at the base of Steve’s skull.

“I’ll be back in an hour to check on Darcy, Friday will continue monitoring her, but that’s the most important thing right now” 

“Okay” Steve nodded. He, they, had a plan even if it would only last the hour.

“How long?” he couldn’t help but ask as Bruce began to turn away, the words tumbling from his lips helplessly. The question hung between them, but no one needed clarification, 

“We’ve got time” Bruce assured, pacifying the panic that had crept into his chest and Steve nodded as the men walked away, Sam squeezing his shoulder tightly for a moment. 

He let his head fall back against the door behind him, drawing in a breath, before he turned his gaze back into the room. Jane’s fingers were sweeping gently over the baby girls’ dark hair that could have either been from Bucky or Darcy herself. A fleeting trace of a smile, that seemed as wrong as it felt, tugged at the corner of his lips as he tried to pretend – if only just for one small moment that Jane was there to celebrate and meet the goddaughter that she would delightfully spoil and teach the wonders of the galaxies to, alongside the little girl’s godfather, for years to come. 

Tears were already streaming down Janes face the minute she turned from Darcy and headed towards Steve. She wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek before hurrying from the room. There was nothing to say, Steve knew she was there if they needed her. 

She darted towards the elevator that Bruce had held for his fellow scientist, her shoulders shaking, and finally, finally Steve closed the door. 

____________________________________________________________________________

Darcy let her head fall back against Bucky’s shoulder. He was sat behind her, his thighs on either side of her body, his chin resting on her own shoulder. Their eyes were focused on the sight before them. Steve, sitting as close as possible on the large bed, cradled their daughter who looked the smallest she’d ever looked framed against his broad shoulders. 

The lights in the room were drawn low, and the room was silent besides their breathing and the rain that was beating steadily against the wide window. The sky was quickly growing dark under the heavy cloud cover and as night grew closer. Her favourite candle was burning at the windowsill. Pepper. 

Darcy sucked in a deep breath and allowed the scent to fill her lungs. As she exhaled she felt her shoulders drop slightly as Bucky’s thumb continued to caress the marred skin of her forearm. The warmth that was emanating from both the men had slowly begun to thaw out her insides as she slowly, one by one, allowed her muscles to relax knowing that no one was coming for her daughter…at least yet. And when they did it would be Bruce. Kind, sweet Bruce. Who would take the best care of her possible-

She wasn’t ready. 

Darcy gasped in a breath as her chest heaved and heart seized. Bucky’s arms tightened around her feeling the tremor that ran through her body. Her heart quickened as she leant forward, ignoring the pain, and reached for her baby. Steve leaned forward and eased the little body back against Darcy’s chest,

“Breathe honey” Bucky coached softly from behind her as his arms moved beneath hers until they were both cradling their child, their daughter. She focused on her face. Her pale skin, her tiny nose and bowed lips. She focused on her own breathing trying to force the air back into her lungs, 

“That’s it Darce” Steve encouraged as his large palms slid up and down her thighs. And Darcy blinked away the spots that had formed in her vision as she relaxed into them, tucking her daughter closer. 

The lightning show that was playing over the sprawling city flashed through the room. She didn’t look up, focused on the little girl, but she could hear the clap of thunder that followed if she listened. Darcy thanked Thor. She didn’t know if it was because she’d once, under the stars in New Mexico, confided in him that storms were her favourite thing in the entire world. Or if it was because of his own turbulent emotions but either way she was thankful he was there. She felt the strength of his presence and support even though she had yet to see her lightning brother in person. 

____________________________________________________________________________

Her footsteps were barely audible as she padded across the lush carpet before pushing the tall door that opened into their bedroom. Her eyes landed easily on Tony who was still in his suit, hunched over on the bed, his gaze unfocused on the floor before him.

She’d checked the lab first and frowned in confusion when she’d found it deserted. Friday had then directed her upstairs and she couldn’t lie that she was surprised that Tony had retreated to their bedroom over the lab. 

She crossed the room, moving to sit beside him and let her own eyes slide shut as she thought about the family downstairs. About Darcy and Steve and Bucky and the tiny sweet baby girl who- 

A half-stifled sob ripped from Tony’s chest and Pepper felt her heart shatter at the pained sound. Her eyes welled, and she stood pulling Tony to his own feet. The armor receded in the next moment and she stepped into his space both of them collapsing back to sit on the bed. 

Darcy was one of Tony’s favourite people. It was a bond that had sparked into existence the very first time they’d met and Darcy had easily and gleefully thrown back a response to every barb he’d aimed towards her. Rhodey had groaned loudly, remarking that there were suddenly two of them and eerily similar grins appeared on both of their faces. When Darcy started making sure that Tony was eating and sleeping and functioning each day, as she did for Jane, she’d felt her own admiration and affection for the young girl grow exponentially. 

As her stomach grew rounder Darcy had begun referring to Tony as Gramps. He would roll his eyes and tell her that he must be her type then considering the age of the lovers she’d chosen, and she’d simply laugh before handing him food and oohing and ahhing over his latest work appropriately. Lately, she’d usually end up eating half of the food she brought him herself, Tony having developed a strange new habit of feeding her whenever she was around since she’d announced her pregnancy, a habit that never failed to amuse Pepper. 

But despite the fact that their relationship looked like sass and bickering and teasing they could all clearly see the love and affection they had for each other, and Tony’s excitement that had been mounting as the mini-Darcy’s due date grew closer. As far as Pepper knew, she’d been the only one to see the multitude of things in his lab that were taking shape for that little girl. That and the colourful child engineering set that had been delivered the previous month, hidden away by Tony. 

He pulled her closer to him as he felt her shoulders begin to shake at the loss that would be felt in the tower for a long, long time. 

____________________________________________________________________________

When Bruce returned it was with a dose of pain relief for Darcy that slid into her veins through the drip that was still running. He was quiet, having taken care to prepare everything before he’d entered the room, and moved around the family in a way that was so unobtrusive it seemed impossible for a man who turned into the hulk on occasion, Bucky mused. 

Darcy didn’t respond her eyes focused on the tiny girl that remained tucked against her chest and though Bucky felt her shoulders stiffen slightly it was by far the most relaxed she’d managed to stay in the presence of other people. 

She didn’t respond when he asked her quietly how bad her pain was but nodded when he asked if it had lessened. It was a start. It was progress. And the way Bruce looked at him assuredly made him feel like something had gone right amongst all the wrong. 

“Elena is on her way” Bruce informed them quietly, and something like relief washed over him. If anyone would know what to do it was Elena. Elena was a friend of Bruce’s; a midwife he’d met during his time in India, who he had called the night the family had told the team their news and turned up in his lab the following morning. 

She was as kind as they came, sharp as a whip and hadn’t batted an eyelid to any of the concerns the three parents had thrown her way, or emotions they’d occasionally find themselves overwhelmed by. It wasn’t uncommon for Elena to be found in the tower, talking with Steve and Bucky, perched on a countertop in Bruce’s lab or making use of her years as a midwife and nurse in the med-bay. And Darcy. Darcy adored the woman. 

If anyone could tell him what he was supposed to do next it was Elena. 

____________________________________________________________________________

“She coming?” Clint met Nat’s eyes as he sunk back into the chair at the long table. His brow arched at her question,

“Laura” Nat clarified, 

“Is she on her way?” 

“No…I just wanted to let her know. She loves Darcy you know. And I spoke to the kids” Nat offered him a pained smile as she nodded tiredly. He hadn’t been able to stop the emotion that overtook him when his children’s voices had rung through the phone. They were cooking dinner, making spaghetti, and Cooper had thrown pasta at his sister making her squeal into Clint’s ear as he sobbed silently in the stairwell. 

Laura’s voice was grave when she asked him what had happened several minutes later.

“Anything new?” Clint asked as Nat refocused on the screen in front of her and it was Nat’s turn to shake her head, sighing dejectedly, 

“Maria’s been sending over the files as they’re completed. They’ve got everyone who survived in holding but she’s almost certain they won’t get anything from them and everything I’ve managed to find shows that they were hired help” Clint nodded, having thought the same thing as they’d been taking down the soldiers Hydra had left behind at the base they’d kept Darcy. Clint paused as he observed the woman across from him. 

“You okay?” Nat nodded curtly,

“We just need to find who did this” she responded, and Clint nodded letting her evade his question for the time being. 

“Bucky and Steve…they’ll want to know and Darcy…” her voice trailed off …Darcy. Who knew what the new mother would want. Would she care? Would she want revenge? Could it help? Neither of them knew, but it was the only mission that would matter moving forward and Clint pulled a stack of reports closer as the partners got to work. 

____________________________________________________________________________

It was Darcy that caught sight of the outfit. It still sat beside Steve’s folded pajama pants at the end of the large bed where Pepper had placed it. Steve followed Darcy’s gaze and reached for the material realising what it was only as he drew it into his lap and it unfolded. He swallowed around the lump that formed in his throat. 

They sat for a long moment staring at it. Six eyes and three minds trying to work out their next move. It was Darcy who moved first, and Bucky drew his arms back slightly when she held the little girl in front of her. She supported her baby’s head gently as she lay her on the bed in the small space between her and Steve, who shuffled backwards just enough. 

It was the first time the baby hadn’t been in either her mother or fathers’ arms since they’d gotten Darcy and bub on the jet and Bucky resisted the urge to reach around Darcy and scoop the little girl up. He didn’t want her to be alone. She was too little. The pain sliced through his chest and he lowered his forehead to rest on the back of Darcy’s neck for a moment, working to control his breath. Kissing her skin, he lifted his head once again and felt Steve’s gaze lingering on him. 

Darcy began to unwrap the blanket, her fingers deftly untucking each perfectly folded corner. She was so small. Their daughter was so small. Unfathomably so. Darcy smoothed the blanket around the little girl as Steve’s fingers began to brush through her hair. He traced her nose and brushed the backs of his fingers across her cheek the way Bucky had done to Darcy earlier. 

Darcy began to undo the press-studs one by one, the little snaps echoing between them. Bucky had seen the bruising on her tiny little chest already and Darcy, didn’t falter, steadfastly ignoring it but Bucky couldn’t miss the way Steve’s face drained white. His neck snapped upwards, but there were no answers to give him. At least he didn’t have any. And they both knew it wasn’t the time. It wouldn’t change anything. Later. 

She didn’t pause but her hands began to shake. Bucky couldn’t know if the blame belonged to the exertion of her movements or the way her new position caused her to lean on her hips and stomach that were undoubtedly sore, or if it was the sight of her baby’s still chest. Either way, he moved his hands to encase Darcy’s smaller ones squeezing gently and Steve took over. He took his time, not wanting to rush, wanting to at least pause time if he couldn’t rewind it. It was Bucky who pulled apart the final press-stud with a tiny click before Darcy eased her daughter’s tiny arms from their sleeves. 

Steve’s finger brushed over five tiny ones. They didn’t move. He would never feel her little grasp. Never hold her hand. The sting in his chest reminded him of serum coursing through his veins.

The little outfit was perhaps the sweetest thing Bucky had ever seen and far better suited for his little girl than the nondescript, thin, Hydra issued onesie. He’d pulled the offending material from the bed where Darcy placed it and put in on the dresser, out of sight. The tiny romper cinched in around tiny ankles and wrists and Steve took care in doing up the tiny wooden buttons, each carved with little animal faces. Bucky’s fingers brushed over the tiniest toes he had ever seen as Darcy and Steve worked in silence. 

It was too big…well…she was too small…despite the multiple zeros that were labelled on the tag. But the material was soft and cosy, and she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. Darcy pulled the blanket back around her little body, tucking her back in, smoothing the material but it was Steve who slid his hands under the baby lifting her. 

“Lean back doll,” he said softly, and it was then that Bucky felt the way Darcy’s body had tightened. He supported her hips as he scooted them backwards gently, settling her against his chest before lifting his hand to hit the pump beside the bed. The small beep that sounded assured him that relief was on its way, but he knew that Steve laying their newly dressed daughter back down on her chest would erase the pain in a way the drugs couldn’t. Her head rested on Darcy’s shoulder who began to run her hand up and down in the infants back. As Steve stretched out beside them Bucky leant forward and pressed a kiss to the top of his daughter’s head. And for the first moment, since they’d found Darcy, he felt like a parent.

____________________________________________________________________________

“Is that all?” she asked her words short and clipped, 

“Yes…yes…that’s it I promise…they didn’t know I spoke Russian…didn’t know I could understand that’s all…I didn’t…I don’t even know who they were…please you have to believe me” Maria had left the room before he’d finished his sentence but he was still pleading her to believe him when she stepped up to Fury’s side on the opposite side of the glass.

“I’ll let Natasha know” 

“No” he hadn’t spoken much since he’d heard the news. They’d both begun working out of his office and had been retrieved by an agent when one of their new charges had started talking. 

“Not today…we can handle this ourselves for today” Maria nodded, agreeing. Earth’s mightiest heroes were due a day. 

____________________________________________________________________________

It was soothing normally. Listening to Steve sketch. The sound was familiar since he was constantly reaching for something to draw on paper, receipts, napkins, whenever his hands were idle. The margins of Darcy’s textbooks and many formal Shield reports were littered with tiny illustrations. He’d once drawn the cityscape across Darcy’s shoulders as they’d lay in bed one night the ink smudged on his lips, Bucky’s chest and the sheets in the morning. 

Hearing the lead move over the page of Steve’s sketchbook had always been a sound of comfort to her, like rain and thunder was, or the sound of Bucky and Steve talking quietly between themselves – a sound she fell asleep and woke to more days than not. 

But a thought that was as painful as it was unwanted had popped into her mind when she’d seen Steve reach for the sketchbook and wouldn’t leave her be. The thought that the sketch Steve produced would be…important. It wouldn’t be one of many to come. It wouldn’t be just another doodle. It would be a memory, it would be something they’d have to look at when they wanted to see her because she wouldn’t be there. It was too overwhelming, too big, too much and Darcy turned her head to rest further into Bucky, whose hand was massaging the base of her neck.

Her eyes closed as she listened to the forming sketch, comforted by the weight of her daughter in her arms. 

____________________________________________________________________________

Jane had been the first to officially meet her godchild. And she was the first of the team to return, a subdued Thor following her into the room.

Darcy passed her daughter to her best friend only a moment after she’d perched on the side of the bed. She felt something pulling in her chest, and she wasn’t entirely sure why but Darcy knew she needed Jane to hold her daughter, needed the little girl to know the wondrous woman she called her best friend. 

The tears were quick to escape Janes eyes, who scrubbed at her face with her free hand not allowing them to fall as she gazed at the tiny girl, 

“She’s beautiful” 

If Darcy thought their daughter had seemed small in Steve’s arms she became almost difficult to see as Jane placed her in Thor’s. Darcy felt a wry smile appear as she watched the couple with the baby girl. She was too tired to wonder what it would have been like. Too tired to think about the significance of the moment. 

Darcy allowed herself to rest back against the pillows. Bucky lay beside her and she let her head rest against his chest as they watched their daughter with her godparents. Steve, not having moved far, stood beside the bed, stretching out his cramped legs yet his hand flitting between Darcy and Bucky’s shoulders.

The Gods gaze remained transfixed on the tiny babe for what seemed like a long time, but eventually Thor lifted his head and met her eyes and for a moment Darcy felt the grief and anguish, that she’d managed to push away since her daughter had entered the world, creep up her throat. She swallowed painfully.

After what seemed like hours and yet no time at all Bucky, Darcy and Jane watched Thor stand and move around the bed before quietly placing the little girl into Steve’s arms. Thor’s hand clamped around Steve’s shoulder for a moment a look exchanging between them that was almost too painful to witness,

When he turned to her Thor pressed a kiss to Darcy’s forehead before drawing back and peering down at her. She waited…for the Thorism, as she liked to call them, the words that were always packed with wisdom and always made her feel better no matter the subject. 

He said nothing…and the silence grew loud between them before he simply leaned forward and pressed his lips to her head once more. 

____________________________________________________________________________

They were all exhausted after Thor and Janes visit. Darcy avoided looking at the photos Jane had taken. When her friend had asked the question gently of the new parents Darcy was uncertain whether to feel panicked that she hadn’t thought of it already. Before it could build up within her, however, her eyes landed on Steve’s half-finished sketch and Jane silenced her worries with a look they’d shared many, many times through the years. 

She knew Jane would have her back. Would climb into the trenches with her. Would pick up the slack and make sure nothing went forgotten or missed. She knew that she could rest. Knew she wasn’t alone. 

Steve’s arms supported her own, as if he knew that her own body was growing weaker and weaker. The pain growing and her muscles, her arms straining with fatigue. She just wanted to hold the little girl forever. That was all. And Steve helped her, steadying her when her arms shook, tightening his grip and holding her up. She wasn’t alone. 

The men had switched positions after their friends had retreated from the room, Steve walking them to the door before setting their daughter in Darcy’s lap between her and Bucky before he slid in behind her. 

His arms had wrapped around her and they’d settled into an exhausted silence as they focused on their daughter. Bucky’s large palm laid over their baby girl, covering her entire midsection, making her look oh so small. His other hand caressed Darcy’s knee beneath the blankets, and his eyes would leave their daughter only to inspect the monitors beside the bed. She wasn’t alone. 

Darcy shoved the memory away. The one that was persistently creeping back in. The one where tight hands held down her wrists, restrained her body and pried her daughter from her arms. Where fingers gripped her hair and material was held over her face until her vision turned black. And each time she’d come to, she was alone. They’d take her daughter from her over and over and over again and she’d be alone. 

Bucky’s palm lifted and turned upwards so quickly it startled both Steve and Darcy. She watched, almost in slow motion, as a drop of water hit the very centre of his palm. 

Darcy frowned. 

Steve’s arms tightened around her and his lips pressed a kiss to her shoulder. Bucky’s fingers closed before lifting up to drag across her jaw. She felt the dampness on her skin. When she lifted her eyes to meet his they were telling her something, pained but certain and her mind worked hard to make sense of it. 

It took a long moment for her to understand. 

The tears began to cascade over her pale cheeks, her breaths growing fast and short. Bucky lifted their daughter and tucked her against his chest quickly and instinctively before moving forwards. 

She felt something inside of her beginning to collapse in on itself. And she knew she wasn’t alone as she felt them move closer, hold her tighter. But she was afraid, it was bubbling up inside of her as she thought of what would happen once she couldn’t see her little girl anymore, once she was taken away. Her jaw clenched as she fought not to let it escape, whatever it was that was shredding her chest and clawing up her throat. She wondered how she’d stop crying if she started, if she let go, let it out. She couldn’t, not yet, and scrunched her eyes as she tried to force it, fold it back into the corners of her chest and the recesses of her mind. She slapped her palm over her own pale, chapped lips as though she could physically stop it. Bucky and Steve on either side of her spoke in low, comforting voices their bodies drawn as close as though they could shield her from the world. They couldn’t, not from this. 

And for the very first time since they’d gotten together, since Bucky and Steve had begun walking alongside her, despite the fact she could feel them and hear them, Darcy felt so utterly, unbearably and completely alone. 

____________________________________________________________________________

So…all your support and amazing comments (So, so appreciated thank you) convinced me to write another chapter. And then my brain wouldn’t shut up and now there’s a whole plan for a whole thing – so thank you for the encouragement and I hope you’re enjoying  

Please let me know what you’d like to see? Who you’d like to see next 


	3. Chapter 3

_When her eyelids finally fluttered open Bucky was hovering over her, his eyes hooded, watching her intently. His gaze caused her skin to warm and she smiled up at him tiredly. Darcy sighed happily when he pressed his lips to the underside of her jaw before beginning to work his way down her neck. The small gasp that escaped her as he hit just the right spot was captured between Steve’s lips when he leaned over to claim hers and she felt her body growing heavy with a sated exhaustion and the warmth that came with being tucked between two super-soldiers._

_The moon glowed through the large window as she yawned loudly, snuggling further into the two of them. When she felt hands softly grip her hips her face scrunched, hands lifting to swat them away and lips parting ready to instruct them that she was closed for business for the night and that they could entertain themselves and their insatiable energy. When she felt her body being lifted from the mattress carefully her eyes flicked open in confusion._

_Bucky had lifted her hips, his thumb caressing her skin gently and Darcy only had a moment to wonder what on earth he was doing before Steve slid a pillow beneath her hips. Her lips quirked upwards as it dawned on her,_

_“Oh, look my old wives have made a reappearance tonight” she teased only grinning wider when Steve’s face contorted into something between exasperation and outrage,_

_“This is not an old wives’ tale Darce” he said with certainty, looking down at her as he pulled the blankets up and over them, and the similar look that spread over Bucky’s face caused her grin to stretch wider._

_“Gravity” he simply added making her laugh harder. Steve’s lips on her own smothered the laugh which tapered off into a sigh before they tucked her between them and Darcy felt her cheeks dimple when Bucky and Steve’s fingers tangled together and came to rest on her stomach. The thought that perhaps it wouldn’t be that long until they could feel kicking beneath her skin made Darcy’s heart swell as she drifted off to sleep, warm and content._

_“Love you doll”_

__________________________________________

The soft tinkering of metal, the rapid clicks of a keyboard and the clatter of tools created a familiar blanket of background noise that seemed to settle her as she scrolled through articles and blogs and websites alike. It reminded Pepper of a time before. Before she’d officially been charged with the daily operations of Stark Industries. Before she’d become a CEO. Back in those days she would work from Tony’s home and often she’d find herself tucked into a corner of his lab or perched on a workbench - when there wasn’t imminent risk of explosion or fire that was. They’d generally orbit around one another throughout the days, working side by side. 

It seemed like a lifetime ago. 

But something about it, the nostalgia perhaps, was a comforting weight on her shoulders as she took in all the information that was unfolding on the screen before her. It was what she did – Pepper Potts. Planned, scheduled, organised, researched – she’d know before she needed to, more than she needed to, she’d have plan A through to Z. And so, Pepper dived in, attempting with each word to maintain the cool composure she managed to complete business with per usual. There were decisions to be made, options to weigh, costs to cover, privacy to maintain. She rolled her neck when she felt the tension building, when the anguish the weeks to come would bring the small family downstairs began to thread its way into her thoughts. When she recalled Darcy’s ashen skin, and protective hold of her small bundle, or the way Steve had held mother and daughter close to his chest, or the tension that had squared James’ frame and darkened his gaze. 

Pepper sighed taking a sip of the coffee Tony had earlier lay in front of her, her nose scrunching in distaste when she realised it had long turned cold. She was distracted a moment later by the door sweeping open and her eyes landed on an exhausted, ruffled Bruce framed in the entrance. 

“How are they?” Tony asked before the door even had the chance to slide shut behind him and Bruce sighed, sending a weary smile towards Pepper when she cleared the space beside her so he could flop bodily down on the sofa. 

“The exhaustion’s beginning to catch up with Darce, with her body at least. I can see it each time I go in… the adrenaline’s beginning to fade, she’ll need to sleep soon” he reported regret and sorrow laced in each word, 

“She in pain?” Tony questioned something brittle in his question and Bruce shook his head,

“She shouldn’t be, but I’ll switch her to something a little stronger once…” his words tapered off and he scrubbed his hands over his face. Pepper’s heart broke for the man, for Darcy, for Steve, for James, for all of it, all of them. 

“She needs to be awake right now and I don’t want to make that harder for her…she’ll be able to rest soon” he filled in quietly. Bruce closed his eyes and let his head rest back on the cushion. Pepper met Tony’s eyes briefly and could see the helplessness she felt reflected back – the feeling that was creeping into her bones. 

“Jane said they might like to see everyone” she added quietly, having spoken to a teary Jane before she’d retired to her room with Thor. Pepper had intercepted the couple leaving the med-bay when she’d been on her way back down to the lab. Jane had sagged against the wall beside Thor as he released her from his arms a distraught expression painting the god's features. Pepper understood, could hear it in her words as Jane spoke, how hard she was attempting to maintain her composure. Thor was silent but offered her an empty smile as he left beside Jane for the elevator. 

She felt Tony press a kiss to the side of her head before he padded back towards the centre of the lab, picking up the wrench he’d lay down when Bruce entered. Pepper simply turned until her shoulders were level with their old friends and together, side by side, they watched Tony work. There wasn’t anything else to do. 

__________________________________________

Steve sent a glance over the top of Darcy’s head towards Bucky who was folded around her other side. She remained bracketed between them, her head a light pressure against Steve’s shoulder and Bucky’s fingers at the base of her skull. It was familiar - the way she was tucked between them. A tangle of limbs they’d easily slid into after the tears began to fall and her eyes shined with a pain that was far greater and deeper than any of the physical harm that been inflicted against her. It was as though they were attempting to hold her together, so she could fall apart. So, she could finally let go. But she didn’t. 

She’d gathered herself. They’d watched her painstakingly pull each piece of herself back together before it was too late, before the dam broke. She’d steadfastly ignored their words, gentle encouragements and attempts at comfort or perhaps she hadn’t heard them at all. Steve could see the concern he felt prickling in the back of his mind reflected in Bucky’s gaze. His own eyes floated back down to observe Darcy’s smooth expression, her distant gaze that had once again locked on their daughter. 

It was unsettling, almost disturbing, to see Darcy so quiet, so lifeless. It caused something to lodge in his throat and his chest to grow tighter, it was unnatural. But he could understand it. After what she’d been through. With what she was going through. His arms tightened around her slightly as he forced his worry away. Who was he to decide how she should act. Hell, he didn’t even know how he was supposed to act. 

He was comforted that she didn’t push them away though and the way she seemed to relax when they were close. Still, he was yet to really meet her eyes, to hold her gaze. He couldn’t blame her. He didn’t want to look away from their tiny, perfect daughter either. Ever. But he knew that at some point, soon, he would have to and so would she. What would happen then? Would they be able to reach her? Help her? Would she push them away then? Would she finally turn to them and ask where the hell they had been while she’d been imprisoned in some tiny hellhole of a room? What the hell he had been doing while someone had been ripping their daughter from them…from her. The quick view he’d gotten of the long, angry incision that spanned her stomach flashed through his mind and he felt acid in his throat…from her. Her. They took their daughter from her. He wondered when it had happened. What had he been doing? Where the hell had he been?

A warm pressure on his neck snapped him back into the room and his gaze lifted to meet Bucky’s. His oldest friend, his husband, Bucky met his eyes steadily, his fingers having found their way to Steve’s neck, tracing a familiar pattern across his skin. Steve looked around the room, realising that his breath had become labored, but nothing else had changed. Darcy’s eyes were still on their little girl, her head was against him, their baby’s eyes were still closed. Steve swallowed the lump in his throat before looking back to Bucky. He drew in a long breath as he focused on Bucky who nodded for Steve to rinse and repeat – they’d been there before. And once again Steve thanked the universe that Bucky was there with him, they would do this together. 

Steve was distracted a moment later when Darcy shifted. He suddenly found himself staring into dark brown eyes. Bucky supported her as she moved, and Steve lifted his arm to support his daughter’s body as Darcy shifted her towards him slightly, to rest against his chest, into his arms. When she met his eyes again any trace of his spiraling thoughts disintegrated and all he could see was her; framed by Bucky, their little girl held between them. He sucked in a breath leaning forward to press a kiss to Darcy’s forehead and meeting Buck’s gaze before three sets of eyes found the little girl between them. They would do this together. 

__________________________________________

Nat caught Clint’s body tense mirroring her own as they heard footsteps in the hall. She forced her body to relax, shaking off the automated response, ready to defend. Her body was alive, looking for a fight, for action, to fix the mess they’d found themselves in. But there wasn’t anything to do outside of the room. The partners sat on either side of a large table, paperwork strewn between them looking for answers, for anything. 

The door slid open a moment later to reveal Wanda and Vision, the latter padding into the room silently and Wanda following with more than a little trepidation, her eyes troubled. Clint nodded to the chair beside him, pulling it from beneath the table and watched the younger woman as she dropped into it. He was almost certain he knew why she was there. Nobody spoke, as Vision sat beside her, and they waited. Clint nodded when Wanda looked towards him and for a fleeting moment he was reminded of Sokovia, of an uncertain young woman in that small room as the battle outside raged on. Her gaze hardened as it had that day and she looked up towards them, 

“They were taking Sarah from her. They would come into the room and they would hold Darcy down…restrain her and they would just take her baby” Wanda’s eyes grew more unfocused as she recalled what she’d seen in Darcy’s mind, her words were hollowed out and tinged with the helplessness Clint was certain the memory was steeped in,

“Sarah?” Wanda blanched, her eyes widening and fingers slapping over her mouth at Nat’s question. 

“That’s the name she calls the baby…in her head…I shouldn’t have said- “ 

“That was Steve’s Mums name” Nat confided quietly averting her eyes to the table though not fast enough for Clint to miss the torment that flooded them. He felt something burrow painfully into his chest at the name. 

“Bucky told me months ago during sparring they were thinking about Sarah for a girl” unlike Wanda, Nat’s voice was calm and steady. They sat in a heavy silence for a moment before she continued,

“I shouldn’t have…” Wanda’s words were weighted in regret. Clint squeezed her shoulder gently before attempting to refocus the conversation, 

“They were taking her from Darcy?” he asked, "do you know what they were doing?” 

“No, they would leave the room, I just… they would take her, they would just take her and there was nothing Darcy could do” 

“Was she …at that time…” Wanda shook her head knowing instinctively what he was asking and even Vision bowed his head at the thought of the still little girl. 

“I don’t know what happened,” Wanda said shaking her head slightly before she took a shuddering breath. She threaded her fingers with Visions when he sent her an encouraging smile and Clint was glad they had each other – that Wanda wasn’t alone in bearing the weight of her powers, especially now. 

“We know Hydra’s been interested in recreating super soldiers for a long time” Nat said interrupting his thoughts and he nodded, 

“We’ll need to speak with Dr. Banner, perhaps he will know how the child was harmed” Vision spoke for the first time and Clint nodded in agreement despite being certain that it was the very last thing he wanted to know. 

“You did good kid” Clint said and Wanda produced a wane smile as she turned back to him. 

“Can we help?” Vision asked from beside her and Nat nodded pushing several folders towards the pair before picking up her phone as it chimed through the room,

“Of course,” Clint replied for his partner, beginning to explain where they were starting their search for answers. Several moments later Clint reached for the computer he’d been using ready to return to his own work but Nat pressed the lid shut, 

“You’re needed on the roof” she said simply, and he frowned in confusion. She didn’t offer explanation simply gesturing towards the door, 

“Just go” 

__________________________________________

By the time the door slid open again Bucky had pulled himself from the bed and was settled in the large chair that had been pushed up beside Darcy’s bed. The woman herself had stretched out slightly, the bed lowered to take some pressure off her hips. Steve lay beside her and he was glad to see the two of them tangled together. Taking what they could from each other. He’d seen the panic building in Steve, knew his thoughts were spiralling out of control, and seen the guilt seeping into his eyes. There was no time for guilt. Or blame. Not yet. 

Bucky let his eyes drop back down to the little body he held in his arms. She was still so little. And she was all that mattered. Later. Everything else could come later. He’d never felt any sense of gratitude for the time he’d spent as the soldier but if there was one thing he could do with almost no effort it was focus on the present with a complete disregard for everything else. It was ingrained in a part of his mind, as easy as breathing, and it had caused havoc as he’d tried to adjust to post-Hydra life. But now, it was almost helpful.

Because she was all that mattered. He knew their time with her was short, was drawing to an end with each moment that passed. He mechanically pushed the pain away that seared through his chest at the thought, refocusing. He would just be, they would just be together, as he’d heard Bruce instruct earlier, just be together…and they could worry about everything else later.

And so he sat, memorising every feature of her face, feeling the lingering gaze of his loves and refusing to allow any other distractions to pierce the moment. 

When the door slid open he’d felt his anger flicker at the base of his spine, he wanted it to last, this solitude, this moment without interruption. He knew it was only going to grow worse. But when his eyes snapped upwards as quickly as Steve’s did Bucky felt his shoulders sag in relief and his irritation evaporate. 

Elena swept into the room quietly, but purposefully, her eyes meeting his steadily before dropping lower and then sweeping towards Darcy and Steve. He caught the way Steve’s body similarly relaxed, knowing Elena’s presence would perhaps bring Steve even more comfort…knowing the punk was already trying to formulate some sort of plan to fix, to help, to lessen the hurt and shield them from impact. Bucky knew that Steve once again was going to have to learn that he couldn’t always fix everything. But that was for later. He refocused. 

“James” her voice was low but warm and he nodded towards her as she moved closer placing a small pile of supplies on the end of the bed gently. 

“Hey Lena” Steve greeted quietly as she stepped around the side of the bed. Elena squeezed Bucky’s shoulder before stepping past him towards Darcy who hadn’t moved. Not when the door had opened, not when the midwife who had become their friend had spoken. The older woman was gentle as she smoothed Darcy’s hair back, 

“Hello sweetheart” it was only once Elena was stood in front of her, slightly obscuring her view of Bucky and of her daughter that Darcy peered upwards her eyes flashing in recognition before she frowned and clenched her jaw slightly, batting away the swell of emotion. 

“Is it okay for me to meet your precious little girl?” she asked Darcy and Steve and Bucky waited, watching Darcy silently as she worked to focus. Bucky could tell it was becoming more and more difficult, that her body was having a hard time, that soon she would need to rest. 

Darcy nodded, and Elena ran her thumb down the new Mum’s cheek before looking to Steve who nodded instantly. When she turned to Bucky he stood and gently eased the little girl into Elena’s arms. It was backwards to how he’d imagined it. It should have been Elena passing him their daughter so that he could turn and place her in her mother’s arms and kiss Darcy’s forehead while Stevie, the punk, probably crying at the arrival of their daughter, held them.

It was Steve who wiped away the tear that slid its way over Darcy’s cheek several moments later before pressing a kiss behind her ear. When she seemed to struggle to lift her body up Elena placed his daughter back in his arms before Bucky could move towards Darcy himself. 

The older woman lifted Darcy’s chin gently and waited for Darcy’s permission before she touched her. When, a moment later, she pressed her palm flat against Darcy’s chest causing the younger woman to hiss in pain Bucky fought the reflex to slam his hand against the pump that was supposed to be ensuring she wasn’t feeling the agony that no doubt was coursing through her. Elena was far gentler however, pulling an icepack form the pile of things she had deposited at the end of the bed and tucking it under his shirt that hung on Darcy’s frame. 

Elena spoke softly and calmly explaining the way Darcy’s body would stop producing breast milk and that the icepacks would reduce the inflammation and pain for now. Bucky floundered for a moment, he hadn’t thought of that. He saw Steve’s panic flare even brighter and swallowed but it was the pain that rippled across Darcy’s face, swelled in her eyes that cut the deepest. He knew that it would be the first of many. A million reminders of what they’d lost. He watched her push it away, the pain, the knowledge and let her body sink deeper into the bed before turning her gaze away from Elena to face him again, her gaze latching onto their baby. 

Elena didn’t bat an eyelid at the dismissal, finishing her explanation soothingly, rearranging Darcy’s shirt and blankets and squeezing Steve’s shoulder comfortingly. As she adjusted the drip and begsn to fill in the chart Bucky felt some kind of tension ease within him at her presence knowing that Elena would have their backs. As would the rest of the team. They weren’t alone. 

__________________________________________

“Mr Barton please stay inside?” Clint turned to see a familiar figure leaning against the foyer wall, 

“You know what’s going on Happy?” Clint asked, allowing the door to slide shut again, and the driver and head of security simply smiled at him before nodding towards the windows. He could tell the Quinjet had only recently landed, the post-flight checks already in progress.

When the ramp began to lower at the tail end of the jet, Clint wondered if he was about to be face-to-face with Hill or Fury himself, a thought that caused his shoulders to tighten slightly. Both their Shield colleagues had been rather tight-lipped when he and Nat had called them to have any and all the recovered information transferred over – he and Nat had spent the time since pouring over it. He wasn’t sure that he had the energy to debate with either of them that they were objective enough to be on the case, but he would; like hell they weren’t going to be involved. 

A familiar face stopped his thoughts in their tracks and he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder before he even realised he had begun to reach for the panel that would open the door. 

“They’ll be here in a moment but we thought it might be a good idea for you to stay inside, away from prying eyes” Clint nodded gratefully but his gaze didn’t leave Laura’s and his eyes only widened and his heart hammered almost painfully in his chest when he caught sight of his three children as the ramp hit the ground. They were helped from the jet by several crew members as Clint fought the impulse to meet them halfway. 

It was his daughter who caught sight of him first when they were halfway to the building, her face lighting up. 

“Daddy!” he heard Lila cheer as she broke into a run only for Clint to sweep her up into his arms, pulling her tight against his chest once she’d stepped inside. Cooper wasn’t far behind, bouncing in excitement, the Thor backpack over his little shoulders causing a red cape to fly behind him as he ran towards his father and sister. 

After sending a somewhat choked thanks towards Happy who high-fived the kids, shook Laura’s hand and ushered them into the elevator Clint sucked in a long breath. 

“My sister is downstairs, she’s going to take the kids for a few days, but they’ll stay in town” he kissed his wife’s head feeling gratitude thrum through his body. He dropped to his knees a moment later and pulled his children to his chest for a second time. 

“Mara said she’d be here…as long as we need” Clint nodded, marvelling at the way his wife always knew. His eyes slid closed as he leant heavily against the wall of the elevator listening to Lila and Cooper chatter, something about seeing iron-man darting between the clouds on their journey over. When he blinked his eyes open a moment later he found Laura watching him carefully, with an arm full of Nathaniel, he smiled at the picture, mother and baby and offered her a tired smile. Her hand found its way to his back as they stepped off the elevator towards his apartment in the tower. As the kids ran ahead he sent his gratitude to the floors above where he knew Nat was still working tirelessly – his partner, Aunty Nat who always had his back. 

__________________________________________

It seemed Darcy had found some relief, since Elena had provided the cold-compresses, and adjusted her medications, her body relaxing more and more. The midwife had placed several more in the small fridge for them to rotate between as needed before lifting the baby back out of Bucky’s arms and nudging him towards the bed. For a moment Bucky had been reminded of his Ma, or Steve’s for that matter, sending him to bed, but that grief was far more well-worn and familiar. 

How much time had passed since she’d softly closed the door he couldn’t tell and for a moment his brow furrowed as he grappled for a sense of time. How long had it been since Elena had left them, since they’d returned to the tower, since they’d found Darcy. It simultaneously felt like hours and days all at once. His eyes flickered towards the window to find it dark outside, but he couldn’t recall what the sky had looked like before or even when he'd last checked. For a sniper and a soldier, he’d been expert at counting, navigating and passing time. He’d spent days in tight spaces waiting for targets to appear through a sniper lens yet somehow now he couldn’t even begin to organise his thoughts and orient himself. Besides, what did it matter. 

And so, he would remember the first time Darcy slept, even if it were only for a moment as bookmarked somewhere between Elena and Sam’s visits. Her eyes had begun drooping not too long after Elena had vacated the room and her body had waned with relief. He felt a hot flare of guilt at not realising how much pain she had been in, but he knew she hadn’t been focused on it either. As she drifted off to sleep her head cushioned on his chest, Steve’s arm that was tucked under hers kept their little girl still and supported. 

They decided silently, between shared gazes, to let her sleep. He was worried she would begrudge it and them, knowing that he would want to keep his eyes on the little girl for as long as possible, but she was so, so hurt. Her body had been through so much and he knew, from experience, that if she didn’t rest her body would take the decision from her – and the last thing Bucky wanted was for her to lose consciousness, they needed to say goodbye. Together. As much as he didn’t want to think about it. 

When Sam entered the room sometime later waking Darcy both Steve and Bucky stood from the bed and he helped Darcy reposition herself on her side as she groaned quietly while Steve headed towards his friend, having lifted the little girl into his arms. Darcy didn’t answer when he asked her if she was okay her eyes growing wider and wider as they searched the room. 

It didn’t take long for Steve to notice Darcy’s panic and he fought the urge to pluck the baby from Sam’s arms where he had just placed her. But Sam, it seemed, was quicker or at least his trained eye was. He moved into the room and took a seat on the chair beside the bed cradling the baby carefully. He didn’t address Darcy and Bucky was quick to move out of her eyeline. He joined Steve where he had perched on the windowsill watching Sam closely, they’d seen this Sam before, the man turned quiet and serious and purposeful – the counsellor Sam, who knew what he was doing. They trusted him. When Steve’s hand found his own Bucky gripped his fingers tightly. They sat side by side watching Darcy watch Sam with wide, uncertain eyes. There were several long beats of silence before Sam’s low voice broke it, 

“Hi sweetheart it’s your uncle Sam…or runner-up godfather…your mother assured me the only reason I didn’t officially get the job was because there’s an actual god in the house” Bucky let his head drop back against the window, Steve’s warm hand in his own as he attempted to figure out why Sam’s words were shredding his insides. 

It took him several moments but as Sam continued to speak, his voice low and warm, telling the story of the fight over the title of godfather he realised that no one had spoken to the little girl yet. Her eyes were closed, and she was still but he felt his throat tighten as did Steve’s grip on his hand as Sam began to talk directly to their daughter about his campaign for godfather, weaving the words together as if she were sitting right in front of him, eyes wide in rapt attention.

It was several long moments later, but Bucky knew Steve caught the slight movement as soon as he did. Their eyes were glued to Darcy’s face, her own were wide and focused on Sam’s every move as she absorbed the sight before her and the familiar story that had caused her so much joy for so many months. It was several more moments but as Sam used his hand to demonstrate the flying contest he’d challenged Thor to, the corners of her lips lifted so minutely it would have been easy to miss but the way Steve’s hand gripped his own assured Bucky it was real. They weren’t alone.

__________________________________________

Hey guys! I hope you enjoy I promise more is coming and more action is coming but I don't want to rush over this either. So please let me know what you think and how you're feeling :)


	4. Chapter 4

When Wanda edged into the room, following Vision, Bucky was sitting in a chair beside Sam while Steve was perched on the bed beside Darcy who was holding the little bundle she knew to be their daughter. They seemed almost relaxed, Sam and Bucky talking between themselves, Steve’s fingers massaging the back of Darcy’s head, but she could feel it…the tension, it was thick in the air and it was certainly tangled in the thoughts that slammed into her as the door swept sideways. 

Wanda hastily pulled the barricades up in her own mind; the family deserved their privacy and she already felt like she had violated her friend when she’d slipped into her mind back in the Hydra facility they’d stormed. Vis had assured her that she’d done the right thing, they wouldn’t have known how Darcy’s state of mind was faring if she hadn’t checked but it didn’t stop the guilt.

It wasn’t until Steve offered her a wry smile and gestured for her to join them that she realised she was lingering by the door. When he stood Wanda was quick to cross the room and reach up on her tiptoes before wrapping her arms around his broad shoulders. This was Steve. The man who’d been a solid source of comfort to her over the years, ever since she’d met him. Since she’d lost her brother. He’d taught her about grief. About adjusting to a world when you knew nothing about it. About responsibility and power and avenging. She’d told him more than once that he would be the best father possible and she had meant it wholeheartedly. 

When she stepped back from Steve feeling as though even then he was comforting her, her eyes fell upon Darcy and what was left of her heart shattered in her chest like china into powder. 

Whilst Steve had become something of an older brother to Wanda, Darcy was her sister. She found herself crawling into the bed beside the brunette, taking the place Steve had been sitting and sliding beneath the blankets without another thought. 

When Darcy moved to pass her the baby, she shook her head, not wanting to part them, not wanting to take the daughter from her mother but when she met her eyes she didn’t need to hear Darcy’s thoughts at all. It was then that she saw Darcy’s arms shaking slightly as she held her baby. Nodding, she slid her arms beneath her friends and allowed Darcy to pass the little girl to her. Wanda raised her knees up and placed the baby girl down as gently as she could, smoothing her fingers over her dark hair and pale cheek. She couldn’t look away. 

She felt Darcy shift towards her slightly and Wanda found her hand under the blankets threading their fingers together silently as Darcy’s head came to rest against her shoulder. For a moment Wanda’s lips slanted downwards as she squeezed her friends hand and resisted the overwhelming urge to cry. They sat like that, silently together, watching the baby girl. The sounds of the others talking faded into the background as they huddled together, and all Wanda wanted was to take it away from Darcy. The unbearable pain she was certain to be consumed by, just as Darcy Lewis had helped to do for her. 

______________________________________________________________________ 

“This is Geraldine, Darcy’s obstetrician” Maria introduced as Fury walked in the door. The man nodded to the woman who was sat rigidly on the chair at the desk, her eyes flicking over pages of notes, 

“How is Ms Lewis?” he asked gruffly and the woman peered towards him over her glasses, 

“I am yet to see her; Dr Banner is taking good care of her and there’s not a lot I can do for her just yet. I will head over to the tower once I am finished here” he nodded before pulling a chair out and meeting Maria’s gaze once more, 

“What do we know?”

“Not a lot” she replied, her words both regretful and frustrated, 

“Dr Johnston has been helping us go through the notes that were recovered on site, unfortunately there’s nothing so far in relation to Darcy or the baby” Hill reported, 

“What is all this then? Fury asked, his eyes surveying the stacks of folders that littered the table, 

“Reports on others…women and men they have been attempting to enhance” Geraldine explained as she sifted through reports, 

“Like Cap and Barnes” Maria added her tone dull and unsurprised. They had seen many, many copycat attempts at the super soldier serum over the years, often being nothing but fatal failures. 

“Keep digging…anything that could tell us what this was…why they took her” Maria had to hand it to the doctor when she didn’t falter even slightly as Fury stormed from the room, the door slamming shut. She simply sighed, feeling the frustration she could see in her boss climbing up her spine.

When they had found Darcy to be missing they had waited for the call. There was little doubt amongst the team themselves or between her and Fury that a ransom would be asked for, or even more likely, a hostage swap would be demanded. Everybody was aware how greatly Hydra craved the return of their soldier and James Buchanan Barnes was ready to march straight into their house if it meant Darcy and their daughter would be returned safely – he’d made that abundantly clear as each minute half of his family had been missing passed. 

The more time that crawled by without the call had made them all antsy, causing disturbing thoughts to unfold in the corners of their minds and poison bloodstreams with dread. Was it about revenge? Payback? Was this about the avengers themselves or was it Hydra as they’d assumed? Darcy had been under heavy protection…for as long as she’d been associated with the avengers really, but most certainly since she’d become pregnant. Nobody including the mother to be had been unaware of the threats against her and the baby. 

Now they were too late. 

But there were still questions that required answering. And Maria knew that although she couldn’t offer anything to fix or change what had happened, the least she could provide were answers. 

______________________________________________________________________ 

“Vis you want to hold her?” Wanda asked softly, her eyes lifting from the little girl before her realising she was uncertain of how much time had passed. Steve rounded the bed and turned to Vision who stood beside the two remaining men by the window. Steve smiled down at her as though he was the one who could read her thoughts. He squeezed her shoulder before picking the little girl up and Wanda marvelled at the way he seemed to do it effortlessly. She could remember a time when he’d confided to her that the only baby he’d held was Bucky’s little sister…excluding of course the countless babies that were thrust into his arms as Captain America. 

They watched Steve round the bed, moving back away from them, and after several moments Wanda twisted her body sideways and helped Darcy to do the same until the two women were facing one another. She lifted her fingers to her friends cheek realising her jawline was sharper than it had been before. She brushed the hair that had fallen forwards back behind her ear.

Darcy had been Wanda’s first real friend when they’d returned to the tower. When her other half, her only family, had been torn away from her the team had tried to rally around her, but it was Darcy that had pierced the barrier she’d tried to create around herself. She invaded her space, and let her cry, they cooked together, and Darcy pulled her from the tower on occasion. She, Steve and Bucky had marvelled many times at the way Darcy Lewis had upturned each of their lives. 

She avoided Darcy’s hair, which was still matted and darkened with what Wanda knew to be blood. Instead her fingers traced her skin and she watched as Darcy’s glassy eyes fluttered closed. She struggled to keep them open and Wanda could see the exhaustion lingering behind her grief – she knew that the sleep to come would be the only respite from the pain that would accompany her going forward. 

The name slipped from her lips at barely a whisper. She didn’t need her wandering mind to know if Darcy heard it. Her eyes snapped open, the corners of her chapped lips quirked downwards, and her chin trembled. Wanda gripped the other girls’ fingers tighter. 

“It wasn’t just from your mind” Wanda added quietly, once she felt a numb calm settle between them. Darcy’s eyes widened slightly, and she held her gaze, until a diamond slipped from the corner of her reddened eyes, sliding over her hollowed cheek until it hit the stark white sheets beneath them. 

______________________________________________________________________ 

_“Jean…Norma…Doris?” despite the fact that Steve had tipped his head backwards, laughing loudly, he still easily caught the cushion that Darcy had thrown towards him,_

_“Boooooo” she cried loudly, throwing another. Steve grinned widely at his wife catching her ankle when she kicked out towards him. He ran his fingers across the sole of the offending foot distracting her from her outrage if only for a moment,_

_“Went on a date with a Doris once remember Stevie” Darcy gasped a second time in faux outrage,_

_“Excuse. Me. your pregnant wife sitting in your lap does not want to hear about your date with Doris” she complained pinching his thigh before turning back to Steve,_

_“and you…we are not naming our child Norma…you no longer get a vote” Steve pouted while Bucky laughed and she could feel the rumble where her back was pressed against his chest. He couldn’t stop his hands running over the slight swell of her stomach. He loved it. He loved her. He already loved the growing baby inside of her more than he could ever, ever articulate. He loved the changes to her body …almost as much as he loved how light and carefree and happy Steve looked at the other end of the couch…had looked since Darcy had shared the news._

_He felt the onslaught of emotion crash over him as he watched his lovers teasing one another. It would catch him off-guard in moments he never expected…and he would realise just how far from the winter soldier he felt…as a husband…a father. He pressed a kiss to her neck, his hands working their way down from where they had been pressed against her stomach to run a devilish finger along her thigh,_

_“That’s what got me into this mess with two old codgers who think that Ruth is a trendy new name”_

______________________________________________________________________ 

“Sarah” 

The name that slipped from Darcy’s lips hung in the air for a long moment. Two pairs of eyes snapped towards the woman who had their daughter cradled against her chest. It was the first word she had spoken since they’d brought her home, since they’d pulled her from hell far too late. It had been too long since he’d heard her voice. It was quiet and breathless with pain and heartbreak but it was Darcy. 

Her eyes slowly tracked a path upwards until she met Bucky’s eyes. Her husband ran a calming hand over her leg, 

“Sarah” he whispered back towards her. An unexpected tear escaped her eye at the sound of the name on his lips and she turned her head quickly to stop it from reaching their daughter tucked just beneath her chin. A hurt so sharp unfolded in her chest and her lips thinned in an effort to stop them from tugging downwards.

When she turned her eyes were suddenly locked on Steve’s. The man who sat on her other side, his fingers tracing the length of her spine, his eyes were wide and anguished. Uncertainty suddenly cut through the heaviness that she had slowly been crawling through her body, the fog – Wanda hadn’t said Steve had been thinking the name. Steve, the son of Sarah Rogers. The boy who had lost his mother too young. Lost his love. And now lost his daughter. She fought to keep her thoughts in a line as they scattered. 

A warm hand cradled her face and Steve lifted her head so he could meet her gaze. 

“Jane” he said slowly and she felt her eyes well, 

“Sarah Jane Rogers-Barnes” Steve said slowly his words quiet and full of ache. Bucky had moved closer to them, bracketing Darcy and Sarah between them and kissed her head softly. He imagined Steve announcing their daughters name to the doctors, to their family, to the world. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.

“We don’t…” Darcy tried before stopping to suck in a deep breath, and they could see the tears that were waiting to fall. Steve shook his head hearing the doubts in her voice. He brushed his hand over her cheek once more, 

“It’s perfect” he promised,

“She’s perfect”

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**Hi guys! It's been a long time but I really miss writing this ... I woke up today and wrote this chapter, I really hope you enjoy! Please let me know what you think!!!**


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